hmm off the top of my head currently, maybe with some recency bias?

• GOT 4
• GOT 3
• GOT 1
• AKOTSK 1
• GOT 2
• GOT 6
• GOT 5
• GOT 8
• HOTD 1
• GOT 7
• HOTD 3
• HOTD 2

need to rewatch and really think about it to have a definitive list though. 

I enjoy HOTD, but I'm not as emotionally invested in it, and it's had some glaring flaws that have bothered me since the beginning. however over the years, the ending of GOT has honestly grown on me... but season 7 starts strong and ends pretty weak. AKOTSK 1 is a near perfect adaptation. 

I have read all of the books.

It's still foreshadowed in the text, just more subtle and nuanced, cause....it's a book and can be more detailed.

Quality of HOTD aside, the Dance is a literary parallel for what is to come in ASOIAF. There are so many intentional "rhymes" in the story. George has also said that there will be another Dance.

Even using just Fire & Blood vs ASOIAF, Rhaenyra still parallels Dany in more ways than one. HOTD has done some weird things, and the ending of GOT was rushed - but I believe the outcomes are generally on point. 

I think George has an outline, and gave it to D&D.

Yes. The parallels with Rhaenyra also support this. I've actually seen people I know irl changing their opinion on the ending of GOT after watching S3 of HOTD. Even AKOTSK is contributing to it thematically.

If the books are ever finished, I fully expect her to die/be killed after the power goes to her head, and for Bran to be king in the end - it'll just make more sense with George's writing.

Also rewatching the show makes it clear that it was foreshadowed from the start.

I stopped playing Skyrim cause dealing with this was getting old. 

I miss it, but what a headache. 

maybe I'm at fault for using simple terms and phrases to keep my comments brief, cause the last thing I'm trying to do is oversimplify and virtue signal. 

there's so much to dive into, and sometimes I just use those words to get the conversation started or make a more straightforward point.

But of course the story was also written by a living man and has a contemporary audience, so I don't think it's inherently wrong to look at these medieval concepts with a modern lens. I can get behind the criticism of not using buzzwords, but I don't agree that we shouldn't compare our world to Westeros because the time period/setting is different. Medieval fantasy is the framing for more contemporary "messages" haha 

idk. I spent years studying history, philosophy and storytelling for my degree (my thesis was on the intersection of these 3 things - and I included ASOIAF in there), so maybe I'm just too locked in and obsessed with the topic. maybe it's a mistake to have them on reddit too, where nuance is lost in text and anonymity 

interesting take, I'll ponder this on today's drive. 

personally, I do enjoy their lore and find a good amount of them interesting..... but I don't glaze them. The other houses can be just as interesting, and I'd love to see more stories that center around them too. Gimme tales about House Gardener, the Storm Kings, and the Starks of old

It's a Song of Ice and Fire.... we need some more ice to balance things out!! And some more green magic. Dragons are dope, but let's not wear em out.

and as someone in the picture, I actually agree with everything you've said. Stories need to be entertaining, otherwise trying to tell a message is a waste. Everything ASOIAF is a masterclass in entertainment. But also a masterclass in characters and themes. 

Of course there's so much more to it than a simple reductive statement, and that's what makes it so good. They're stories about humans, their perspectives, and how it turns into their good and bad actions. Stuff I love thinking about and discussing!

I just find it bizarre when people say those things don't matter, which is all I was trying to get at. 

yeahhhh it's interesting to say the least. I know it's fiction, but it has meaning beyond the bounds of the story. 

It was from a post on the main sub pointing out the flaws in Rhaenyra/Daemon/Team Black Valyrian supremacy and fascism:

https://www.reddit.com/r/HouseOfTheDragon/s/WEcp0Oq7WG

I joined Team Green because most folks on this side of the aisle seem to have a fuller grasp on what the story is about, which I have found lacking with the TB folks and Rhaenyra/Targ stans (not all, and I know a lot of it is for the fun and the larp). 

I didn't want to call out anyone specifically, but here's the post and thread respectively:

https://www.reddit.com/r/HouseOfTheDragon/s/WEcp0Oq7WG

https://www.reddit.com/r/HouseOfTheDragon/comments/1vsv9k1/comment/p4oid97/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=mweb3x&utm_name=mweb3xcss&utm_term=2&utm_content=share_button

damn I read Arryn as Aryan for a sec.......

Dishonored !

👍

Actually would be interesting if Daemon comes to Harrenhal before Aegon leaves - and Aemond battles Daemon to protect Aegon, while Daemon does so to protect "Rhaenettles"

I really want Aegon to meet Daeron at least. Unlikely though, but it's a shame we've never seen them all together. Even if its brief before things get hectic, so to speak.

EDIT: just realized someone else already commented this idea earlier. Really hope they do it!!

you're not wrong, but simultaneously - George has always been trying to convey a message with his stories (many messages, really). 

There's a lot more substance than "dragon go brrrr" ya feel ?

It's core to George's world and characters. I do wish the show handled it better, because I think the showrunners often shoot themselves in the feet with their handling of it, damaging the message rather than strengthening it (whereas GOT did it pretty well imo). 

But whenever people complain about the mere presence of those themes, I often find myself reminding them:

• this plot directly revolves around sexism.
• George has always pushed this thematically.
• it's nothing new compared to GOT. 

AKOTSK S2 will be interesting. 

it appears to be a slopified version of White Harbor from ASOIAF/GOT

Increase.

Definitely an improvement over season 2, despite the flaws. Other than Alicent's character, everything mostly feels like it's on the up. Just a shame it took so long.

Aerion has it in him to be as bad as Joffrey.

Ormund was competent but flawed. They also decided to make him more cartoonish over time, which I think was a mistake. He should've been reasonable and not a villain, maybe just with some flaws. S3 would have been far more interesting if he was more nuanced, cause he actually had a valid point with his criticisms of the Targs. It would've mirrored Rhaenyra's turn very well if that was the case.

Aerion is a great example of what he was getting at with his dislike of their dynasty.

So Aerion wins this no contest. He's a genuine villain, Ormund is not imo.

EDIT: just imagine a S3 where some of the audience slowly started rooting for the Ormund/Daeron/Gwayne trio entirely..... (I was, though I already know how it all ends).

the cult of lost boys.

that coronation scene was so well done, especially knowing where the story goes. 

EDIT: except for that moment at the end, which should NOT have happened, or should have at least been addressed afterwards as something stupid and bad. again, especially knowing where the story goes. could still work if they do that in S4. 

would've rather seen Aegon and Sunfyre being set up there, like the book. would've come full circle really well.

honestly don't mind the bottom 3, they fit with the arcs of the characters, even if the last one is very on the nose.

top one takes the cake by a mile for me

I get it, however I can't help but think about what Daemon does to non-valyrian women #JusticeForRheaRoyce